OPINION: An historic week and a big thanks to our Suffolk police volunteers

There were celebrations across the country throughout the long weekend, and I know many events took place all over Suffolk.

I was privileged to attend the Lowestoft Jubilee Celebrations “Party in the Park” where Lady Clare Euston, Lord Lieutenant of Suffolk, lit the beacon in Sparrow’s Nest gardens immediately after The Queen had done so at the Palace, given that Lowestoft is the most easterly point in England.

It was a lovely event, and many of my colleagues were at similar events elsewhere, and my officers and Specials also supported a number of public engagements throughout the county. One of my Inspectors, Dan Fiske, was chosen to take part in the national Trooping the Colour and the Queen’s Birthday Parade in London on the first day of celebrations to represent Suffolk Constabulary.

Prior to the jubilee, it was fantastic to see the Suffolk Show taking place again after a two-year break due to Covid, and I thoroughly enjoyed spending some time there on the second day where I met members of the public, many of whom came up to me to thank the constabulary for all that we do to keep Suffolk safe. This is always most gratifying.

Our constabulary stand, which we shared with other emergency services, showed the breadth of partnership-working of the blue light services, and certainly the last two years have especially shown how brilliantly we work together.

Assistant Chief Constable Rob Jones represented my chief officer team on day one of the Suffolk Show – he especially enjoyed his police mascot “Morse” experience.

I’m so pleased to confirm the constabulary will be taking part in Suffolk Day on 21 June. Suffolk Day gives everyone the opportunity to celebrate all that makes this county so great. I know that there are lots of events going on across the county, and here at Martlesham Police Headquarters we are opening our doors to our museum.

The museum is primarily about the history of the Suffolk Constabulary and its predecessors - Ipswich Borough Police, East Suffolk Police and West Suffolk Police - and the people who served in it.

There are many artefacts and photographs on display that show the history from the 19th century through to the present day. You are invited to visit the museum which will be open from 5pm to 9pm (last tour commences at 8pm).

Tours will take place hourly and will be guided by museum volunteers. It is essential to book your place by emailing scmuseumbookings@outlook.com and the number of places on each tour will be restricted. Therefore, to avoid disappointment, early booking is recommended.

Children attending, who must be accompanied by an adult, will have the opportunity to have some ‘hands on’ experience of uniform and equipment as well as chatting to community engagement police officers. Please do come and visit our museum – we are all very proud of it.

Isle of Man police helmet at the Suffolk police museum. Picture: NEIL PERRY

The museum volunteers do a great job, and it was good to be able to thank them and all our other volunteers during National Volunteers’ week which took place last week.

Members of the Special Constabulary, Suffolk Cadets and Police Staff Volunteers support the constabulary and the county of Suffolk in a number of ways. Last year, Specials completed over 33,500 voluntary hours to the constabulary, and until the end of May this year had done 14,000 hours.

Police Support Volunteers worked over 5,000 hours last year. The mounted PSVs and Local Police Volunteers have continued to be the Constabulary’s ‘eyes and ears’ in Suffolk local communities, ensuring their communities see a visual presence and supporting them in linking with their local policing teams.

The week started with a video of thanks from Assistant Chief Constable Jones, and all volunteers also received a “thank you” card from him.

Finally, I was delighted to see the launch of Project Servator last week, a policing tactic used to disrupt a range of criminality, including terrorism. The approach, which sees police, businesses, community partners and the public working together, is already in use in various parts of the UK, including across the whole of London after it was pioneered by the City of London Police in 2014.

The project sees the deployment of both highly visible and plain-clothed police officers, supported by other resources such as dogs and firearms officers. The deployments can happen anywhere and at any time and include police officers specially-trained to spot the tell-tale signs that individuals may be planning or preparing to commit a crime.

The deployments are designed to make the environment as uncomfortable as possible for criminals to plan or carry out their activities. This is a good opportunity for my staff to work with local businesses about the importance of being vigilant at all times.

A big part of Project Servator focuses on the engagement between officers and members of the public who will work together to report any suspicious activity.

You have a vital role to play in helping the police by reporting anything that doesn’t feel right, for example an unattended item or someone acting suspiciously. I would urge you to report suspicious activity immediately to a police officer or member of staff or report it through the Suffolk Constabulary website.

Alternatively, you can call use on 101. Suspicious activity is anything that seems out place, unusual or doesn’t seem to fit in with day-to-day life. If it’s an emergency, for example if you find a suspicious package, always call 999.